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The MIND Hawaii Competition at Kapiʻolani Medical Center allows medical students to collaborate with students from other fields in designing and developing innovations to help build solutions to challenging medical problems.
MIND, which stands for "Medical Innovation and Design," provides education, mentorship, and networking opportunities for students from the University of Hawaiʻi's Schools of Business, Medicine, Engineering, and Law. Each year, students form a group and at the end of the program, students showcase their work and compete for funding to help their product take the next step in the innovation lifecycle.
Some of the ideas shared this year included a device that would help reduce rates of dislodgement in Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy Tubes, a portal to optimize geriatric care in Hawaiʻi, and a bio-wearable ultrasound patch for simplified, continuous blood pressure monitoring for geriatric patients.
While those stellar projects received accolades from the panel of physicians, physician-scientists, and engineers, the VacuVolt team of Lily Johnson, Shay Nakahira, Aileen Ferrer, Reannon Suzuki, Colby Watase, and Mikayla Sonnleitner, was awarded first place. VacuVolt is a wound treatment that integrates suction with electricity.
Faculty advisors play a crucial role in making MIND Hawaii a success. Russell Woo, MD, Scott Miller, PhD, and Peter Di Rocco, MD, have a strong passion for biomedical innovation and mentor students throughout the experience.